AirSpaceMag.com

When Pigs Could Fly

The F-111, beloved by pilots in America and Australia, takes to the air for the last time

(John Freedman)

By
Michael Klesius

January 31, 2011

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360-Degree Torch

(John Freedman)

Freedman captured this Dump and Burn, also called a Torch, from the other end of the jet during an earlier air show in New Zealand. “Due to the cooler air and greater elevation,” he says, “the aircraft produced huge rooster tails of vapor and brilliant flames.” The Pig began a horizontal 360-degree turn directly opposite the crowd with its wings full aft, and when it arrived back at show center, pulled up into a steep climb while still torching. The pilots have to maintain their speed within a narrow sub-sonic margin to keep the flame lit.